Posco’s union is expanding the scope of its second partial strike after wage negotiations remained unresolved. Korean reporting says the action, which began on September 16, will widen from 7 a.m. on September 18 to include additional hot-rolling and plate-related operations in Pohang and Gwangyang. The number of workers expected to participate is around 480, increasing the potential for disruption at major steel-production facilities.
The labor dispute is already drawing a regional economic response. Pohang convened a second emergency meeting with the city council, the local labor office, the chamber of commerce, Posco, the steel-industrial-complex management body, the Bank of Korea’s Pohang branch, small-business groups and Posco suppliers. The city said it would use supplementary-budget resources for business stabilization and local consumption measures as the strike continues.
The immediate question is how far production effects spread beyond the units directly involved in the partial strike. Posco remains central to Pohang’s industrial economy, so prolonged action can affect suppliers, transport companies and small businesses even without a full shutdown. The next signal will be whether labor and management narrow the wage dispute before the expanded action develops into a longer confrontation.